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To Roon or not to Roon... That is the question!

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John Morrison

7/20/2017 7:08 PM

I have been reading about Roon. It appears to be taking the streaming software world by storm. There is so much discussion going on about it that I feel like I need some knowledgeable suggestions as to whether and/or how I should proceed to try it out!

I am currently using an NAS with Files set up in multiple categories such as Classical, Pop, Jazz, etc.. These predominantly hi-rez wave files are streamed through my house using the DLNA Protocol. I use either a PC running Foobar2000 or a Squeezebox Touch for playback. I use Apps on my Samsung S6 to control these remotely. I can also use my OPPO BDP-93 for streaming and the remote app for that.

I use the folders I have set up as my "catalog" of music and search using Foobar2000 or Squeezebox to search for the actual recording I am looking for. I use the Squeezebox playing through a Denon Receiver's DAC for that playback system. I use Foobar2000 on my music laptop playing back through my Geek Pulse fi DAC in the main system.

I also have a family subscription to Spotify through my son. I hardly use this though as I have not had the time to learn the interface. It doesn't appear to be very user friendly.

Should I try to move to Roon or not? If so, how should I proceed? What effect will this have on my current setup for playback of my digital files?

John

David Snyder

7/20/2017 8:57 PM

Hi John,

Here are some quick facts about roon vs. your current solution that may affect your decision:

	Current Solution	Roon
Software Cost	Free	$9.92/month
Streaming Cost	Free (Spotify covered on son’s family plan)	Spotify is not supported. Upgrade to TIDAL for $16.99/month for Value HiFi plan or convince your son to move to TIDAL and add you to his family plan.
Compatible with Squeezebox	yes	yes
Streams to DLNA Renderers	yes	no
Smartphone and tablet Apps	yes	yes
Index library on NAS	yes	yes
Licensed high quality metadata including album art, credits, artist and album reviews, and song lyrics	no	yes
Seamless integration of library albums and subscription streaming content	no	yes
Advanced metadata search (eg., by bass player or production engineer)	no	yes
Easy to export and share playlists	yes	no
Oppo BDP-93 Support	yes	no
Streaming degrades sound quality	yes	no (see here for details)
Lossless Internet Streaming	no	yes (via TIDAL HiFi)
Supports MQA DACs and content	no	yes
Transfer playback from one zone to another	no?	yes
Group zones together for synchronized playback	no	yes (grouped zones must use the same protocol)
Control all zones from a single phone or tablet app	no	yes
Playback state for all zones is synced to all remote control apps and can be controlled from any of them	no	yes
Each zone can have its own DSP and room correction filters	no	yes

Roon + TIDAL make a pretty amazing pair. Assuming the same master (I tested with Chesky albums), sound quality is identical to my local dBpoweramp CD rips. Many of the MQA master on TIDAL sound better than my CD copies.

Having TIDAL and Roon has really changed how I collect music. Since so much content is available on TIDAL, I only purchase music on physical media when it’s a rare issue (eg., MoFi, XRCD) or I just want to support the artist. Being able to search my music library and TIDAL for a particular mastering engineer is a useful feature that has helped me to discover albums that I enjoy and likely would not have found otherwise.

If you decide to give Roon a try, I recommend starting a TIDAL trial at the same time. You’ll have at least two weeks to explore the integration and features. The Roon guys are pretty friendly and may allow you to extend your trial if you need more time to make a decision.

Don’t hesitate to ping me if you have any questions. Cheers.

-- David

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